Coursera Negotiation Notes

Thoughts On Life

I took a class on Negotiation from Coursera and I found it very helpful.  Below are my notes from the course.  

Categories of Negotiation: Power, Litigation (3rd party arbitration), Arbitration, Mediation (3rd party negotiation), Negotiation, Avoidance

When Negotiating, Be Sure to Ask for Authority: Explicit, Implicit, Apparent. Does the person you are negotiating with have the authority to execute what you are negotiating?

Get Authority from the Principal, not the Agent of the Principal.  The person negotiating with you will be able to say they have authority, but you only know for sure when you talk to the person who owns or controls the item(s) of interest.

Fraud (A false representation of a matter of fact that is materially relied upon), Fiduciary, Unconscionable

When Negotiating, these are Pitfalls to Avoid:

  1. Mythical Fixed Pie Assumption
  2. Anchoring
  3. Overconfidence
  4. Framing (more risk averse when choosing between positive options, more risky when choosing between negative options)
  5. Availability
  6. Escalation (Competitive Arousal)
  7. Reciprocation
  8. Contrast Principle
  9. Big-Picture Perspective: Don’t get lost in the details

Agreement validity (what it takes for the agreement to be valid under the law)

  • There must be consideration: both sides must give up something (in common law countries, not necessary in civil law countries but good to just in case)
  • Legality
  • In CA, non-compete for 1 year contracts are illegal and unenforceable

Parol Evidence Rule: Once the agreement is in writing, only what is in the writing will count, nothing discussed before/prior/considered.  Therefore, get everything in writing.

Implied in contract of food sale is that the food is not spoiled; can take back to grocery stores for replacement or sue

If the relationship is long term, then you can have a shorter contract so that you can be more flexible with each other; if the relationship is short term, then you should have a longer contract to specify all terms

 

Life Goals Analysis (to think about before negotiations)

To complete this analysis, ask yourself: How does this dispute (or deal) relate to my goals in life? When preparing your list of life goals, consider the following possibilities:

  1. Family goals. Do you want to spend more time with your family? How will you spend that time?
  2. Leisure goals. What do you enjoy doing when you aren’t at work?
  3. Retirement goals. When do you plan to retire and what will you do during retirement?
  4. Financial goals. What are your financial plans and how will you achieve them?
  5. Business and career goals. Do you have any plans to start a business or move to a new job?
  6. Relationship goals. Do you anticipate any changes in your personal relationships?
  7. Service goals. Any plans to increase your community service?

 

http://negotiationplanner.com/ – Course inspired Website / App

Other Resources

http://blog.codetree.com/articles/what-its-like-buying-a-128k-side-project.html

Google: sales tactics for budget is cut: https://www.sandler.com/blog/how-do-you-respond-to-your-clients-budget-objections

This post is part of AttemptedLiving’s Life Education Curriculum, a collection of core knowledge everyone should have.

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